In Your Eyes
by Cerise Sky
Summary: It's been months since the incident, but Seto's furious words still plague Yami. He no longer feels he's a worthy rival in Seto's eyes, and growing more insecure and lonely with each day. Is there any way the CEO can show him he still cares? SetoxYami
1. Chapter 1: Make Inu

A/N: Okay, this is my very first fic, so please have mercy if it sucks! _

I got the idea after watching episode 159. SPOILER: It was after Yami lost to Raphael and Yuugi's soul got taken away because of it instead of his. Now, you see, this would make the first official loss Yami had because before he could have beaten Seto in Duelist Kingdom, but he didn't cuz Yuugi stopped him. So, of course, when Seto heard that Yami lost…you can imagine his reaction. You'll see what I mean in the fic. The subtitles for that scene were a bit too weird for me, so I tweaked them a bit. ^^; Hey, it's a fanfic, right? And I wrote this before I got to know how the Doom Arc ended, so it won't really exactly follow the storyline.

Note: Seto doesn't call Yami "Yami" in the anime, just "Yuugi," so I'm going to try and be faithful. He's going to call Yami "Yuugi" in this fic, but I'll be referring to Yami as "Yami." Yes, I know it's confusing…-_- I just think it's *ahem* well, so sexy whenever Seto says Yami's name in the sub. He really pronounces and draws out the double "u" in it, so it's like he's breathing the word… Mrr, it's hard to explain!! . Oh, and Mokuba's calling Seto "Nisama," which means Big Brother. 

Disclaimer: *sigh, sob* If I owned Yu-Gi-Oh, do you think I would be here writing fanfiction on it? And if I did, Yu-Gi-Oh would be categorized in the "shounen-ai/yaoi" section up there with shows such as Gravitation and Mirage of Blaze. ^^ Although YGO is chockfull of slashy hints…*cough* Yami _catching Seto *cough*…Mwahaha, it's like I influenced it after all! But I don't own. -__-_

Warnings: Seto/Yami Y-A-O-I!! Or eventually there will be…I'm slow and I like emotions to develop at least semi-realistically, but there will be good stuff at the end. ^_^ Dunno what yaoi is?? Trust me, you should leave…RIGHT NOW!! Oh, and a little bit of Yami angst…He feels all forgotten and stuff…but nothing violent or anything which is why this fic is more Romance/General-ish. You could tell Yami felt so bad for letting Seto's expectations down!! His eyes were adorably large in that episode and QUIVERING as he looked down at the floor as Seto was yelling at him!! Okay, I'm ranting again. Sorry…^^;;

Anyway…here's the fic! The first part's a dream, in case you get confused.

~*~*~

**In Your Eyes**

Chapter 1

~*~*~

_Ring Ring Ring_

_"What is it now?" Seto growled at the turquoise-haired secretary who appeared on the telephone screen. He was already in a bad mood after several useless or just plain annoying phonecalls._

_"A man named Jounouchi is on the line," she responded._

_Nearby, Mokuba's eyes widened and he turned away from the window back to the screen. "Jounouchi?" he wondered._

_"That idiot's on the line? Connect him," Seto ordered gruffly._

_"Yes, sir." With a click, the screen shifted so that a chocolate brown eye could be seen. It blinked in surprise before the rest of the person's face showed, revealing the dirty blonde strands of Jounouchi Katsuya._

_"Kaiba," he took a deep breath, face still disturbingly oversized and crowding up the whole screen. "I have a favor to ask."_

_Mokuba sweatdropped. "Jounouchi, leave the cam alone."_

_The face once again looked confused for a second, then finally figured it out. Jounouchi pulled back until his face was normal sized, revealing the rest of the gang surrounding him. "Sorry 'bout that," he said sheepishly._

_"What do you want?" Seto demanded through the phone's mouthpiece, annoyance clearly in his voice._

_"Erm…well, you see, we found out some more stuff about the Doom organization."_

_"Doom organization?" Seto raised an eyebrow, rather surprised._

_"Yeah, so we need to get to __Florida__, where there are supposedly some more clues. Can you lend us one of your flying ships or jets or something? We're stuck."_

_"Please, Kaiba," Honda added from beside Jounouchi._

_Jounouchi, who was never really good with words and even less with persuasion, suddenly leaned forward to grip the laptop with which he was talking to Seto with in frustration. "Please hurry too! If we don't hurry, mou hitori no Yuugi's[1] soul will…"_

_At this, everyone else tried to suppress a gasp. All except for Yami, who turned his already down-turned face to the side as if embarrassed. In truth, he didn't want to be here at all, where Seto could clearly see him. However, even closing his eyes didn't help ease the painful shame that washed through him. _

_Honda was the first to act. Grabbing the blonde in a headlock, almost enough to choke him, he whispered harshly. "Oy, are you crazy, Jounouchi??" Apparently the group hadn't intended to let the Kaiba brothers know about the capturing of Yuugi's soul, but Jounouchi had almost let it slip._

_It certainly didn't help when Mokuba repeated Jounouchi's words. "Mou hitori no Yuugi's soul…?" He was utterly confused, but something clicked inside Seto's mind at that moment._

_His assumptions were confirmed when Jounouchi hastily tried to make up for his slip-up by waving his hand vigorously and saying "It's nothing! Nothing at all!! You hate all this supernatural stuff anyways…ahaha…" Even the other teen's laugh sounded false and nervous. With each second, Seto's face grew more contorted with fury and disbelief. He then looked right at Yami, and had the shock of his life when he saw those exotic violet orbs were downcast, still purposely avoiding the screen by staring at something to the side. Guilt, shame, and dejection were clearly present, as if those eyes were a clear window into the Game King's soul._

_"Yuugi? Could it be? Did you…lose??" Seto whispered as he continued staring, half in shock, half in disbelief. It was more to himself than anyone else for he was sure Yami didn't hear him since the smaller teen didn't even flinch._

_"Wh-What are you talking about, Seto?" Jounouchi was still trying, but doing a horrible job of pretending. His nervous laughter was interrupted, however, by Seto slamming his hand down on his desk, shaking the screen._

_"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!" He practically yelled into the mouthpiece, his outburst surprising the whole group on the other end. Even Yami finally turned back to look at him with wide eyes. "Are you telling me that that title of King of Duelists that I gave you…on top of that __Battle__ _Tower___…" The CEO was shaking as each word came out brokenly. "Are you telling me that YOU LET SOMEONE TAKE THAT AWAY?!?!?!" His sapphire eyes glistened as they bore directly into Yami's amethyst ones._

_Yami's eyes became half-veiled again with shame, his large eyes quivering, almost afraid for what more was to come from the CEO. "Kaiba…" it came out no more than a soft whisper, almost a plea, but nothing else followed. His voice was frozen, not knowing what else to say, not knowing how he could express his sincere guilt and sorrow for letting down his most valued rival._

_"I think I've misjudged you, _Yuugi_," Seto emphasized the name with a surprisingly distaste and anger. Yami felt his heart sink at the new foreign tone, which had never been used to address him before. "I don't want to have anything to do with a make inu[2] like you!!!!" With that, Seto slammed the mouthpiece back into the phone, hanging up._

_Although it was only a mere click from the group's side of the conversation, it resounded loudly off the walls of Seto's work office. Silence followed immediately after as Mokuba looked at his brother with worry, concern, and shock._

_"Nisama…"_

_Yami continued to stare at the screen even after it went black. Seto's words replayed over and over again in his head, mingling and echoing like a haunting melody. With each repeat, it sunk deeper and deeper._

_"I don't want to have anything to do with a make inu like you!!!"_

_"I don't want to have anything to do with a make inu like you!!!"_

_"I don't want…"_

_"With a make inu like you!!!"_

_"Make inu like you!!"_

~*~*~

Yami woke with a start, sweat drenching his entire body. Both his fists were clenched around his bedsheets, his knuckles white, and his breathing was uneven. The disarray of Yuugi's room met his eyes, all the toys and games looking like black blobs against a grayish background. After he took enough time to calm down, he groaned. Not that dream…no, nightmare, again. He had had it many times despite the actual event being months ago. He still remembered it as if it had only just happened, and Seto's words as clearly as ever. He just couldn't get them out of his head.

'Did he really mean what he said?' He had often asked himself. 'Baka[3], of course he did.' He had always answered, and slowly he had come to accept it although it still haunted him. He had accepted that he was no longer Seto Kaiba's one true rival, no longer someone whom Seto respected, however grudging a respect it was. He was no longer worthy in the CEO's eyes.

And it hurt.

Countless nights Yami had had the same dream, as if watching a replay of that incident which he so wished to forget or at least not think about as much as he actually did. Yet it still plagued him. The "make inu" insult plagued him. The guilt, the shame, the feeling of helplessness to live up to a set of requirements. Everything was still eating away at him with as much force as it had back while fighting the Doom Organization. Yami had wondered why it bothered him so much. He had asked himself almost every night why he couldn't get his mind off that incident…and Seto's words. But he could never come up with an answer. 

He had said nothing to anyone else either, not even Yuugi. He thought he deserved it. It was his loss, after all, caused by his own rashness and unwillingness to listen when his other self told him not to use that card[4]. He needed to accept it…How else was he supposed to move on?

A headache started to assault his brain again from a combination of lack of sleep and thinking too hard. Thankfully, the snores of his aibou from inside the Millennium Puzzle assured him that he didn't wake the smaller boy. He already felt guilty for taking over Yuugi's body to sleep in, but recently his soul room had been a wreck and he always had this strange, insecure feeling whenever he was in it. The maze, if not already, was even more perplexing than before. He dared not spend too much time in it much less sleep in there.

Yami grabbed several tissues off Yuugi's night stand and wiped away the excess sweat from his forehead. His head throbbed and his eyelids felt heavy; he was in desperate need of sleep. Carefully he snuggled back under the covers, hoping he wouldn't suffer another repeat of that same dream.

In no time at all, he was sound asleep.

~*~*~

"Yami, I'm counting on you to run the shop again today," Sugoroku Mutou shouted up the stairs. "I have another er…'meeting' to attend to," he grinned in a most perverted fashion before rushing out the door[5].

Yami sighed as he got up to prepare for another day of standing behind the dusty old counter. Yuugi was still resting up in the puzzle after his experience with the Doom Organization. Having his soul separated from his body apparently drained a lot of his energy, so Yami volunteered to run the shop for him a few days a week while he rested up. Still, it was so boring just standing around there and waiting for a customer. Business wasn't too bad, but it wasn't booming either, and often Yami had to keep himself occupied by arranging and re-arranging the items for sale.

He was just in the midst of shuffling and arranging magazines at the counter when the bell to the Game Shop clicked as the door swung open with a bang, the sound catching him by surprise. He flinched and was just about to say something when the "intruder" walked up right in front of him. Yami's words were caught in his throat as he caught sight of Seto Kaiba right in front of him. He felt that same wave of sadness and shame swept through him and dropped his gaze back to his magazines. Ever since meeting defeat at Raphael's hand and losing his one and only aibou, he was pretty sure Seto viewed him as a failure. Well, it had to end one day or another. He couldn't always win as Seto once thought. Still, he enjoyed the attention and respect the CEO gave him whenever they happened to bump into each other, more than humanely healthy, let's just say. But now...

Yami sighed. Now there was no reason for Seto to even look twice at him. He had thought the billionaire would start chasing after Raphael or someone in hopes of rising to that level as he had once did with Yami. Thus he was still kind of shocked as to why Seto was _here_ of all places. Yami snapped out of his thoughts when he felt said CEO's gaze on him. He went back to organizing his magazines all while speaking in a low tone. "Can I help you?"

Seto remained silent, unsure of what to say. Yami wouldn't even look him in the eye. He could still see that flicker of dejection in the spirit's lush violet orbs although Yuugi's soul had been gotten back safe and sound. Just what was going on? He knew he had said something…had called Yami…well, a make inu the day he found out Yami had lost a duel, but...He hadn't really meant that. Yami didn't deserve to be lumped on the same level as that dumb blonde friend of his. Seto had just been so angry and shocked...

Seto found himself fidgeting in the awkward silence. Guilt pricked at him like a thousand knives the more he reflected on how harsh he had been. How long had it been since he last saw a smile on Yami's face...or at least a smirk or a confident, I'm-going-to-win expression plastered on those delicate features? No, now it always looking down with half veiled eyes, something Seto had seen so many times he had _memorized_ how dark and thick those eyelashes which framed those violet orbs were and that rosy purplish dusk color they took on when he looked really close. He needed to see SOMETHING of the old Yami...he just HAD to...

He had later learned it wasn't entirely Yami's fault that he lost the duel. Raphael was as much as to blame. Even with that one loss, though, Seto didn't see Yami in a different light. He was still the clever, confident, and at times caring King of Games he had known since they first met two years ago. He was still Seto's ONLY worthwhile rival and whom Seto vowed to beat one day. He was Seto's obsession, one of Seto's main reasons for living, apart from Mokuba that is. Seto found this as hard to admit as admitting defeat, but Yami definitely had become a part of his life. He couldn't just drop him because he lost one duel. He couldn't...somehow...

The shuffling of Yami's feet broke the silence. The shorter boy had finished with the magazines and was moving over to the other end to sort card packs, all the while keeping his face carefully away from facing Seto's.

"Yuugi..." Seto breathed finally.

"Nani[6]?" Yami's voice came out in a whisper, laced with dejection and uncertainty, and once again Seto's heart leapt into his throat.

"I..." He began, but couldn't make the words he wanted to say come out. 'I still want to duel you! You're still worthy in my eyes!' His brain practically screamed, but his throat was so dry even uttering one word was difficult. He swallowed. "I…I don't think you're at that same make inu level as your canine friend." 

As soon as that came out, Seto felt like hitting himself. Sure, that made things MUCH better between them.

Yami smiled sadly, just the slightest twitch of those full, rosy lips, which had Seto staring at to make sure it wasn't his imagination. He was so out of it he didn't even notice the insult directed at Jounouchi in that sentence. "That's nice, Kaiba." And then he looked away again.

Seto couldn't stand it anymore. He reached out and grabbed Yami's arm, surprising the both of them and whirled the smaller boy around to look him in the eye. He almost wished he didn't because he found himself drowning in those violet depths, and not able to do a thing except stare into them. He found himself overwhelmed with the urge to reach out and cup that delicate chin and say something…anything…that would put the glow back into those exotic eyes. And that urge was growing stronger and stronger as he continued staring at the former Pharaoh. 

Currently said Pharaoh was looking adorably surprised, confused, and a bit…hurt? Those soulful eyes quivered slightly as he looked at Seto, still not comprehending why the CEO was staring so intently at him. He couldn't read a thing in those normally cold blue eyes, but he could tell they were slightly warmer than usual. He gulped slightly, feeling apprehensive.

The moment was cut short, however, as the door once again swung open, revealing a large group of enthusiastic elementary school boys who had just gotten off from school and were fighting for the right to get into the card shop before the rest. Seto and Yami both snapped out of their eye-lock, the brunette swiftly withdrawing his hand from the other's arm. Without a word, he turned around and pushed his way through the boys and out the door, leaving a dazed and confused Yami looking after him.

"What the hell was I thinking?" He berated himself as he got into his limo and rolled up the shades so no one, not even the driver, could see him. His cheeks burned a little when he recalled what he would have done if the silence had lasted any longer. Now that would have been hard to explain. He kept telling himself that whole visit had been purely to see how Yami's morale was after swell…the "incident," but he couldn't just bring himself to go in and then walk away without so much as a word. He still didn't understand the whole of his feelings, but he knew that he couldn't bear to see Yami like this any longer.

For whatever the reason, Seto had to try and get the old Yami back.

~*~*~

[1] Means "the other Yuugi." The anime/manga uses it a lot, usually to refer to Yami, but in this case Jounouchi's talking about Yuugi's soul, which was taken away. I dunno, it just feels too weird using "the other Yuugi" while writing, so I'm using "mou hitori no Yuugi."

[2] Pronounced "mah-kay ee-noo," not "make." It's Seto's nickname for Jounouchi ever since Duelist Kingdom—loser dog. I was surprised myself when I heard him call Yami that in that episode, but he DID! O_O And all the while after I was thinking "Poor Yami…" I never imagined Seto would ever call Yami a loser dog…which is why I am making him pay and repent in this fic! Mwahaha…^_^

[3] Means "idiot" or "stupid." Something of the like. "Baka" just sounded better to use in the sentence, I guess…

[4] Umm…I dunno much about Yami's duel with Raphael since I don't have all of the subbed DVDs, but I do know that Yami used some kind of card that turned him evil or something, and then he started dueling without trusting the cards anymore, which is why he lost. Yuugi tried to stop him from using it, but he didn't listen. -_-

[5] Yes, we all know Yuugi's grandpa's a big pervert. In the manga, he estimated Anzu's bra size right in front of her. O.o And he went all googoo-eyed at Vivian Wong (she came in after the Doom Arc) in the anime. Oh, and did I mention he had this really happy look in his face when Anzu hugged him to her chest when Jounouchi (or maybe it was Yami) won a duel against someone in Battle City? . He's a dirty, dirty old man… 

[6] Sorry, I couldn't help it!! I've been watching Cardcaptor Sakura for too long! Every time Syaoran tries to confess his love to Sakura, he always goes "Sakura…" and she goes "Nani?" sweetly. @_@ It means "what" or "what is it" in Japanese. I think it'd be too impolite for Yami to just say "what" and overkill if he said "what is it?" 

A/N: Ummm…so how was it? Good? Horrible? Overly dramatic (I tend to do that ^^;)? Ugh, the flashback was longer than I intended. I was just trying to do it so people who never saw that scene before wouldn't be missing out. ^^; I'd really appreciate feedback, even flames as long as there's a reason! I always want to improve. (I don't want to be an embarrassment to all the other AMAZING S/YY writers out there.) Heck, the idea might even be overused…although from all the S/YY fics I've tracked down (there's not more than a handful compared to all the other pairings), I never saw anything like this.

Thank you for reading! Please R/R and let me know what you think!   


	2. Chapter 2: Forgotten

A/N: WOW!! Thanks everyone for all your support!! ^_^ I'm so glad my fic got REVIEWS!! Todokanunegai, I know you! And I love your fics to death!! You're my first reviewer too!! I can't thank you enough! ^^ 

Also, to everyone else, Santurion, Lone Wolf55, and Mizu no Naka…*bows* Thank you so much!! Yay! Someone else knows how I feel about the way Seto goes "Yuugi…" ^^

This chapter's a bit short, sorry. -_- But I was really busy and I wanted to get this up on V-day.

Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. -__-

Warnings: Seto/Yami, and some Yami angst, but not THAT much ^^;;

"…" is for speaking and '…' is for thinking

Happy Valentine's Day!! ^_^

~*~*~

**In Your Eyes**

Chapter 2

~*~*~

"Yo, Yuugi! Ya here?" The telltale bell rang once again as Jou stumbled into the Game Shop, the rest of the gang in tow. Yami was just locking up the window cases when he saw the group, his eyes brightening a bit. He hadn't seen them for a while.

"Minna[1]," he greeted, stepping out of the shadows that had been cast on the counter. The other three teens looked in his direction, but nobody replied except Anzu.

"Konnichiwa, Yami-san,[2]" she said, her voice, though, sounding a bit forced.

"Yeah. Hey. Where's Yuugi?" Jounouchi added on, looking around the seemingly empty store. Honda didn't even respond, just stood there staring along with the blonde.

Yami noticed this, a painful jab pricking at his heart. "He's resting up on the puzzle right now. I'll go get him." Half-heartedly the tri-colored haired boy wiped his hands on a nearby washcloth and ran up the stairs. Slowly he opened the door to Yuugi's room and wasn't surprised to see his aibou[3] in his spiritual form playing around with some toys.

The smaller boy noticed he was caught and abruptly stopped. "Uh…hi, mou hitori no boku[4]," he said rather sheepishly.

Yami raised a delicate eyebrow at him. "Aren't you supposed to be resting?" He saw Yuugi's blush deepen and decided to cut him some slack. "Anyway, your friends are here, looking for you. Go on, the shop's hours are almost over."

Yuugi's face brightened as an excited smile painted his features. "Yay! All right, then!" He was literally bouncing as Yami took the puzzle from off the bed and the switch was made. "Right, then. I wonder if Jounouchi-kun brought the instruction manual this time?" The boy thought to himself as he skipped down the stairs.

From the depths of the puzzle now laying once again on the bed, Yami could hear his other self hurry off into the distance, and couldn't help the wave of loneliness that washed over him. 'That's the sixth time this month…he didn't even say good-bye,' he thought to himself bitterly. Yuugi had become so distant ever since the whole encounter with Dartz and the Doom organization. Yami couldn't blame him. That made it twice that he had hurt his aibou, once when he had also nearly hurt Kaiba when he dueled with him on top of the tower, and the other when he lost control in his duel with Raphael. No wonder Yuugi didn't trust him. So it was only right that he was more or less ignored…right?

His friends too, no, Yuugi's friends, not his, hadn't talked to him at all recently. Just a friendly hello here or there, a few words, usually asking for Yuugi and his whereabouts. Yami knew it was selfish of him to want them to pay attention to him…after all, he was only the "remnant" of a 3,000 year old pharaoh, some spirit Yuugi was forced to share his body with, and who only came out for duels. No wonder none of Yuugi's friends could ever be called his own. All the carefree times friends were supposed to spend together, Yami took no part in.

Still, Yami couldn't help but feeling there was a void in him. 'Don't *I* deserve someone too?' Just a friend…just someone who would see him not as a shadow of Yuugi, but as a person by himself, as he once was. Actually, he doubted he had any real friends back in Ancient Egypt save for Mahado, his faithful Black Magician…if he had been a mighty Pharaoh…Who was to say he wasn't a cruel one? Was that why he had been sealed inside this damned puzzle until the present?

He had thought…really, truly, honestly thought he had been worth something in the eyes of someone. Okay, and that one someone was Kaiba…who definitely saw the differences between him and Yuugi. *He* had voluntarily chosen Yami as the rival to strive to beat, to help sharpen his own dueling skills as well. Because it *was* Yami who dueled him all those times. But after that shattering moment when Kaiba had called him a "make inu," Yami had come to see just how shallow that respect and fighting fervor for him had been, or at least in his opinion. He couldn't even bring himself to meet Kaiba's standards. How could he do so for anyone else, for that matter? He didn't want people being in his company because they were obliged to, as his subjects and priests were back in Egypt, but because they genuinely wanted to. How could Yuugi do it so easily…yet he couldn't?

Yami snapped out of his thoughts as something warm and wet fell onto the back of his hand. He only then realized the hotness of his eyes, his now slightly blurred vision, and the sticky feeling on his cheeks. Hastily he rubbed away the tears that dared to stain his face, but it only further tore open the wound in his heart.

Dejected and forgotten, the former Game King wrapped his arms around himself and leaned against the surreal wall of his soulroom, pure black and emptiness surrounding him.

~*~*~

"Nisama! Nisama!" Mokuba tore into his older brother's workroom, not bothering to knock. "You got an invitation to this Worldwide Duel Monsters Tournament Mr. Jiik is holding! You're gonna go, right?"

Kaiba snapped out of his lingering thoughts on yesterday's encounter with Yami and turned a rather blank stare on the raven-haired child. "Sorry, Mokuba. I'll have to decline."

"Awwww!! Why??"

"I'm just…not in the mood to duel. What would be the point anyway?" Kaiba brought a hand up to sift through his hair absentmindedly as he turned back to his laptop screen, which was virtually blank save for a few letters.

At this, Mokuba genuinely frowned. His big brother had been like this for a while. There was no passion or interest whenever he dueled. He had played so many empty games of Duel Monsters that he finally gave up on doing it altogether. His reasoning? Because he didn't feel like it. Mokuba had had a slight guess as to why this was, him being there when Kaiba had shouted those seemingly hateful words into the telephone, but he hadn't mentioned it ever since that day. He felt that he had to say _something_, though, for Kaiba's dueling "depression" had lasted quite a while.

"Is it because Yuugi won't be there?" He prodded gently.

At this, Kaiba half-reacted, but not enough for it to visibly show on his face. His tenseness, though, gave something away.

Mokuba grinned. "Well, don't worry. I've made sure Yuugi and the gang will be there! I found them out playing at the arcade this morning, so I invited them. They seemed really eager too."

Kaiba blinked. Could it be that Yami had gotten over his own depression? He turned to stare intently at his brother. "What did Yuugi look like?" he asked carefully.

"Huh? Well, the way he always does, I suppose. You know, big round eyes, spiky hair, short, dressed in school uniform. What, have you forgotten him already?"

The CEO felt something sink within him when he heard "big, round eyes." No, that definitely wasn't Yami. It was Yuugi, his other self, and no doubt the one who will be dueling in the tournament since it wasn't that big of a deal like Battle City was. He knew Mokuba didn't fully understand the concept of the "two Yuugis" even though Yami had said it right out to both of them during the helicopter ride. Was he the only one who had enough brains to see it besides Yuugi's friends? Half-heartedly he replied, "No, Mokuba. I was just curious…that's all. And no, he's not the reason I'm not going to attend."

The younger Kaiba's happy face dropped, but he tried his best not to seem too upset. "Okay, Nisama. I understand. I'll leave you to your work now."

After Mokuba left, Kaiba once again leaned back in his leather chair, eyes darting upwards and examining the peeling white paint of the ceiling. His thoughts drifted back to what he heard on the first and only ride he and Yami had ever had together…especially in his chopper and especially sitting next to each other… Kaiba quickly shook himself mentally. Okay, he admitted he had rather…enjoyed having the diminutive pharaoh there right next to him…so close he could feel the warmth radiating off the other's body…But it was all because Mokuba insisted on having a window seat. He was forced to sit next to back then what he thought the most important opponent in his life.

He forced himself to focus back on the conversation, not its conditions. With a sigh, he contemplated the shock he felt. It was the first time he had heard something so seemingly ridiculous come out of his most respected rival's mouth, and the scary thing was, it corresponded exact with all that crap Ishizu had loaded into his mind. Of course, he found himself half believing it before, but especially during the ride as it came out as Yami's words, where it got to a point where he was so close to believing it that it scared him. So what else could he do but lash out and firmly oppose in order to get Yami to shut up as well as to keep his own sanity? It hadn't seemed to shake Yami at all, but now he was beginning to see all that pride and demeanor might just…have been an act.

It must have taken a lot to deteriorate Yami to the point where he layed his emotions right out in front of him, free for anyone to see and take advantage of. He had once had such a poker face, always smirking, always confident, always just…Yami. There was really no word to describe it. But during that visit Kaiba had paid him, he could clearly see all the turmoil in the smaller boy's cloudy eyes. They lost their shine…and so much more.

Kaiba pounded a clenched fist on his desk. 'Damnit, and there's nothing I can do about it. Why doesn't Yuugi or any of the peanut gallery do something?' It hurt…a lot. The object of his obsessions didn't deserve this. It hadn't all been because of him, had it? Was it really all his fault that Yami had lost all traits that had so perfectly suited and defined him before?

He hated not knowing, and the Gods be damned if he didn't try and find the answer. 

~*~*~

[1] Means "everyone." Yami often calls the gang this, so does Yuugi. It sounds strange in English, so I decided to use "minna."

[2] "Konnichiwa" means "good afternoon" or simply "hi." "San" is added after a name as an honorific, usually to people who are a lot older than you.

[3] Meaning "partner," Yami frequently calls Yuugi this, while Yuugi calls Yami "mou hitori no boku."

[4] Meaning "the other me," it's Yuugi's way of addressing Yami, his "dark" half.

A/N: Go, go, Seto!! *hugs Yami whose still brokenly sitting in the shadows* Dun worry, Yami-chan, there still are people who care about you!! Uh, yeah…I just had a bunch of V-day chocolate, so I'm a bit hyper. We made chocolate in school, melting and molding and everything!! They're goooood…^^

Anyway, thanks for reading! Please R/R!!


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